Preparing for the 2015 Mille Miglia: The Mini Miglia
Automobiles
To get team Jaguar up to speed of what the actually [INAUDIBLE] requires it teamed up with the Caledonian Classic and Historic Motor Sport Club to create a mini [INAUDIBLE] of sorts.
Not only would I get the chance to spend some time with the glorious c type I'll be driving across Italy.
It's also with its owner and my co-driver, Ben.
Hi.
The car is one of the first production C-types made and is running about 285 brake horsepower.
It has a race history, though never raced at the Millie in its heyday.
Ben, however, has raced it a fair bit in the 26 years he's owned it.
I've driven a C-type before and I'm well aware of two things.
One, how much they're worth And too, how very different they are to the kind of cars I'm used to.
The gear box is tricky, the steering heavy, throttle response amazing, but the breaks, not so much.
Oh, and the clutch is really springy.
So the cars a bit tricky but no where near as difficult as the drive.
You see, the mini and, by extension, milimelia isn't a race, its a rally.
A rally that requests perfect timing, talent, endurance and skill.
There's three main things to look out for.
The first is the route book.
Confusing, right?
Well, one very similar is going to be our bible in Italy.
It shows us how far we should have gone, how far since the last direction and what we need to look out for to show we've been there.
The second of the control stages, you've got to drive as smoothly as possible at a certain speed over a set distance.
Easy in something modern, less so when you're target speeds and kilometers.
An hour and your speed goes over 50 years old, and works in miles.
The final bit's the real killer.
The regularity stages.
Like the controls, you have to maintain an average speed over a set distance within a larger stage, and it's timed so they know exactly when you're mucking about.
Unlike my last trip to Italy This isn't a point to point [INAUDIBLE].
This is going to require real concentration.
We practice for an afternoon, while the [INAUDIBLE] will be forced solid day to drive it.
And in Armenia what I thought was going to be Quite entertaining and, and, very jolly is going to be that, but it's also going to be a serious amount of work and concentration.
And you know what?
I can't wait!
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